Mr. FASCELL. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (HR3807) to amend the Arms Export Control Act to authorize the President to transfer battle tanks, artillery pieces, and armored combat vehicles to member countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in conjunction with implementation of the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe.

The Clerk read as follows:

HR3807

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the "Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty Implementation Act of 1991 ".

"The authorities provided in this chapter shall be exercised consistent with the obligations incurred by the United States in connection with the CFE Treaty.

"SEC. 83. AUTHORITIES.

"(a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.-The President may transfer to any NATO/CFE country, in accordance with NATO plans, defense articles-

"(1) that are battle tanks, armored combat vehicles, or artillery included within the CFE Treaty's definition of 'conventional armaments and 1SU W;Y7t limited by the Treaty';

"(2) that were, as of the date of signature of the CFE Treaty, in the stocks of the Department of Defense and located in the CFE Treaty's area of application; and

"(3) that the President determines are not needed by United States military forces within the CFE Treaty's area of application.

"(b) ACCEPTANCE OF NATO ASSISTANCE IN ELIMINATING DIRECT COSTS OF TRANSFERS.-In order to eliminate direct costs of facilitating transfers of defense articles under subsection (a), the United States may utilize services provided by NATO or any NATO/CFE country, including inspection, repair, or transportation services with respect to defense articles so transferred.

"(c) ACCEPTANCE OF NATO ASSISTANCE IN MEETING CERTAIN UNITED STATES OBLIGATIONS.-In order to facilitate United States compliance with the CFE Treaty-mandated obligations for destruction of conventional armaments and equipment limited by the CFE Treaty, the United States may utilize services or funds provided by NATO or any NATO/CFE country.

"(d) AUTHORITY TO TRANSFER ON A GRANT BASIS.-Defense articles may be transferred under subsection (a) without cost to the recipient country.

"(e) THIRD COUNTRY TRANSFERS RESTRICTIONS.-For purposes of sections 3(a)(2), 3(a)(3), 3(c), and 3(d) of this Act, defense articles transferred under subsection (a) of this section shall be deemed to have been sold under this Act.

"(f) MAINTENANCE OF MILITARY BALANCE IN THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN.-The President shall ensure that transfers by the United States under subsection (a), taken together with transfers by other NATO/CFE countries in implementing the CFE Treaty, are of such valuations so as to be consistent with the United States policy, embodied in section 620C of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, of maintaining the military balance in the Eastern Mediterranean.

"(g) EXPIRATION OF AUTHORITY.-

"(1) IN GENERAL.-Except as provided in paragraph (2), the authority of subsection (a) expires at the end of the 40-month period beginning on the date on which the CFE Treaty enters into force.

"(2) TRANSITION RULE.-Paragraph (1) does not apply with respect to a transfer of defense articles for which notification under section 84(a) is submitted before the end of the period described in that paragraph.

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"SEC. 84. NOTIFICATIONS AND REPORTS TO CONGRESS

"(a) NOTIFICATIONS.-Not less than 15 days before transferring any defense articles pursuant to section 83(a), the President shall notify the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate in accordance with the procedures applicable to reprogramming notifications pursuant to section 634A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.

"(b) ANNUAL REPORTS.-Not later than February 1 each year, the President shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee and Armed Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate a report that-

"(1) lists all transfers made to each recipient NATO/CFE country by the United States under section 83(a) during the preceding calendar year;

"(2) describes how those transfers further the purposes described in paragraphs (1) through (3) of section 81; and

"(3) lists, on a country-by-country basis, all transfers to another country of conventional armaments and equipment limited by the CFE Treaty-

"(A) by each NATO/CFE country (other than the United States) in implementing the CFE Treaty, and

"(B) by each Warsaw Pact country in implementing the CFE Treaty.

"SEC. 85. DEFINITIONS.

"As used in this chapter-

"(1) the term 'CFE Treaty' means the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (signed at Paris, November 19, 1990);

"(2) the term 'conventional armaments and equipment limited by the CFR Treaty' has the same meaning as the term 'conventional armaments and equipment limited by the Treaty' does under paragraph 1(J) of article II of the CFR Treaty;

"(3) the term 'NATO' means the North Atlantic Treaty Organization;

"(4) the term 'NATO/CFE country' means a member country of NATO that is a party to the CFR Treaty and is listed in paragraph 1(A) of article II of the CFR Treaty within the group of States Parties that signed or acceded to the Treaty of Brussels of 1948 or the Treaty of Washington of 1949 (the North Atlantic Treaty); and

"(5) the term 'Warsaw Pact country' means a country that is listed in paragraph 1(A) of article 11 of the CFR Treaty within the group of States Parties that signed the Treaty of Warsaw of 1955.".

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Florida [Mr. FASCELL] will be recognized for 20 minutes, and the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. BROOMFIELD] will be recognized for 20 minutes.

The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida [Mr. FASCELL].

GENERAL LEAVE

Mr. FASCELL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include therein extraneous material on HR3807, the bill now under consideration.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Florida?

There was no objection.

Mr. FASCELL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

(Mr. FASCELL asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. FASCELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of HR3807 authorizing the President to transfer certain limited equipment pursuant to the CFE Treaty. One year ago, on November 19, 1990, 22 nations met at a summit of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe in Paris and signed the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe [CFE Treaty]. The CFE Treaty is an agreement that mandates reductions and limits on military equipment such as tanks, armored vehicles, artillery, combat aircraft, and helicopters in Europe from the Atlantic Ocean to the Ural Mountains. This treaty is another major arms control achievement of the post-cold-war era. It culminates a long, arduous process of negotiations between NATO and the Warsaw Pact on force reductions in Europe which began in 1973, but didn't become a realistic opportunity until the Berlin Wall came down.

The CFE Treaty requires that each state which is a party to the treaty submit extensive data on its military forces, adhere to detailed provisions for the destruction or conversion of excess equipment, and open military installations to intrusive inspection.

The CFE Treaty was formally submitted to the Senate on July 1, 1991. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee reported the CFE Treaty to the full Senate today along with the implementing legislation we are now considering. The Senate is scheduled to consider and give its advice and consent to this treaty on Thursday.

The legislation that we are considering today is a key component of the CFE Treaty and is considered to be part of the implementation of that treaty. Specifically, the transfer program authorized by this legislation would enable the United States, Germany, and other allies to adjust their reduction liabilities by transferring treaty limited equipment to other allies, allowing the Alliance to achieve an effective overall defense capability at lower force levels. I would like to also point out that this is a NATO program and not solely a U.S. portion representing only 30 percent of the overall program. Therefore, 70 percent of the costs associated with the program will not be incurred by the United States and 70 percent of the actual equipment transfers will come from other NATO member countries.

Briefly the legislation:

Clarifies that the transfers are consistent with the obligations incurred by the U.S. and other allies in connection with the CFE Treaty;

Limits the articles eligible for transfer only to battle tanks, armored combat vehicles, or artillery included within the CFE Treaty's definition of conventional armaments and equipment limited by the Treaty;

Clarifies that the United States will not incur any additional costs for such transfers;

Includes language concerning the military balance in the Eastern Mediterranean; and

This legislation does not include authority requested by the executive branch concerning follow-on support for the initial transfers. This language was deleted to reflect concerns raised by some of our colleagues and with the concurrence of the executive branch.

I would like to commend my colleagues on both sides of the aisle of the Foreign Affairs Committee and also on the Armed Services Committee for working with us to fashion this legislation which now enjoys broad bipartisan support. I would also note that this legislation in its current form is fully supported by the executive branch.

In closing, Mr. Speaker, I would like to express my support for the legislation before us and for the CFE Treaty. I believe this treaty enhances stability and security in Europe and that this implementing legislation further complements the treaty objectives and I urge my colleagues to support this measure.

I include for the RECORD the fact sheet on this subject.

THE TREATY ON CONVENTIONAL ARMED FORCES IN EUROPE

INTRODUCTION

For more than four decades, the tragic division of Europe was maintained by the massive conventional forces of the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies. The mobility, firepower and disproportionate size of this force, and its capacity for surprise attack, constituted a major threat to the West. The signing of the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE), on November 19, 1990, signaled the end of the Soviet Union's military dominance of Europe and locked in the welcome political changes of the previous year. In doing so, it fulfilled one of NATO's long-held ambitions: to lower and equalize conventional force levels from the Atlantic to the Urals and thereby enhance the security and stability of all of Europe.

Implementation of the CFE Treaty will involve one of the largest disarmament programs in history. The Soviet Union alone will have to destroy the military capacity of many thousands of tanks, artillery and other pieces of equipment. Furthermore, it will constrain Soviet conventional forces even within the Western Soviet Union. When the Treaty is fully implemented, the Soviets will retain in Europe only 35 percent of the equipment they held in 1988. Moreover, a provision of the Treaty known as the "sufficiency rule," will prevent any nation from creating a conventional force greater than one-third of the total armaments permitted in the area. This provision applies to all Treaty signatories; however, in practice, it only affects the Soviet Union. Finally, the CFE Treaty will, through a system of regional sublimits, curb any nation's ability to concentrate forces in a manner threatening to its neighbors.

A stringent verification regime will ensure that reductions proscribed under CFE are carried out. The inspections and information exchanges will make it difficult to hide militarily significant violations of the Treaty. In addition, it will hamper any nation's ability to amass equipment in excess of the Treaty's limits. The verification measures thus act as a hedge against future militarism or political excess and provide a standard by which we can judge the actions of the other signatories. The Treaty's required reductions and provisions for intrusive monitoring constitute obligations that go well beyond the unilateral and bilateral withdrawal agreements the Soviet Union concluded following the revolutions of 1989. As Secretary of State James Baker noted, "Where tens of thousands of Soviet tanks previously were poised for an offensive, now hundreds of inspectors will stand, and this will help ensure stability and provide warning even if political conditions change."

The binding nature of the CFE Treaty, its extensive verification regime and the strict regulations on destruction, location and storage of equipment will make a significant contribution to the security and confidence needed to produce a new, more stable European order.

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The CFE Treaty includes geographic sub zones within the overall Atlantic to the Urals region with limits on the amount of active ground equipment which can be stationed in them. Equipment in excess of these limits-up to overall permitted ceilings-must be kept at designated storage sites. The Central, Expanded Central, and Extended zones are "nested". The other words, the Expanded Central Zone includes all of the territory of the Central Zone plus the four Soviet military districts, Italy, France, The United Kingdom, and Denmark.

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Mr. BROOMFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend Chairman FASCELL for bringing this legislation expeditiously to the floor for consideration. This legislation is important to the President and the Nation and warrants our strong support.

This legislation authorizes the President to transfer tanks, armored combat vehicles [ACV's], and artillery to members of the NATO Alliance in connection with implementation of the CFE Treaty agreed to last November in Paris.

This legislation will help NATO modernize its forces, increase efficiency, and shift defense burdens.

In addition, it clarifies the authority of the President to ensure that the United States will not incur any additional budgetary expense as a result of the transfers.

Finally, I would like to point out that this legislation mandates the President to ensure that any equipment transfer to Greece and Turkey under this program is consistent with United States policy of maintaining the military balance in the Eastern Mediterranean.

I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

Mr. BROOMFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. FASCELL. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. HOCHBRUECKNER). The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Florida [Mr. FASCELL], that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, HR3807.

The question was taken; and-two-thirds having voted in favor thereof-the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.